My Answer
by ChangeHeart
Summary: Zack died in a car crash with his father. As a result, he was sent to Limbo for Judgement. There, he was given a second chance at life in Gamindustri. The only condition is that he has to be reborn, and his only way of doing so is finding his happiness.
1. Chapter 1

**There's a story poll on my page. It's about what I'll write after all the short OC stories have been written and uploaded. With that being said, your feedback on that would be greatly appreciated.**

* * *

 **Chapter 1**

"…" Why was I here? More importantly, where even was I?

I sat in a wooden chair, staring into the white abyss. The only thing keeping me from going blind were the clothes that I wore, contrasting the room.

For some reason, I couldn't really find the energy in me to talk. Instead, I just sat there, tired and still wondering why I was here.

That's when something actually happened. "Well, it's a shame to see you here. I'm sorry."

Looking up from my clothes, I found a woman standing there.

She was ghostly pale, had long flowing black hair, and wore white robes.

She didn't seem to show any emotions. "You must be wondering why you're here. Well, this is Limbo, and I rule this place as the Ruler. You're here to await Judgement from me and to be sentenced."

"…" Wait, Limbo? Does that mean I'm dead? "A-Am I dead then?"

"That's right; you've died," she stated.

"…" I looked around at the white space. Eventually, my gaze turned back to the woman. "So, how'd I die?"

"In a car crash," she answered. "Your father had been drinking, remember?"

That's when I remembered _everything_. From my parents' fight, my dad getting drunk later that night, trying to whip me while my mom tried to stop him, to him knocking her unconscious, and dragging me into the car with him.

After that, I guess I died in a car crash.

I looked up at her. "Wait, if I died, does that mean my dad died too?"

"Yes," she nodded. "However, he didn't come to Limbo for Judgement. Instead, he was just sent straight to Hell."

"I see..." I slumped in the chair I sat in. While part of me was happy to see that man where he belonged, I still felt bad for him.

"With that out of the way, I'm here to Judge you," she said again. "And, seeing as you don't seem like a bad person, I'll offer you two options. You can either go to a new land and be revived at a cost, or sent straight to heaven."

Honestly, I'd be fine with either option. Though, there were a few things keeping me from choosing either. I raised my hand. "Question, if I may."

"Go right ahead."

"What exactly do you do in heaven anyway?" I asked. "Like, is it all clouds and how everyone describes it?"

Her gaze shifted up as she thought for a moment. "Well, it certainly is a peaceful place. You're just a drifting soul, forever to simply exist there without a body. There's absolutely nothing to do and it's not fun there at all, if that's what you're asking."

"Figures..." I let out a sigh. "Then what about this new land you were talking about? What's it like there, and what's the condition?"

"This land I'm referring to is known as Gamindustri," she explained. "It's a place highly advanced and makes your world seem like it's still trying to figure out how to create a lightbulb."

"…" There's no way it was _that_ advanced.

"It's actually also a beautiful and nice place to live in, if you want my honest opinion," she added. "However, I'm not sure you'll like the condition for living there."

"What's the condition?"

"Well, the only reason I'm allowing you to go there is because you haven't really sinned in your life," she began. "With that said, sending you there already requires a lot of energy. If I revive you, I'd only be able to partially revive you."

"Partially?" I cocked my head. "What do you mean by partially?"

"It means what it means. I'll only be able to revive half of your body," she replied. "If you don't keep that body maintained, you'll die within that day by decaying."

"…" All that I was getting from this was that both options were kinda terrible and nice at the same time. "Is there at least anyway to fully revive?"

"There is," she answered. "Simply find happiness."

"...Huh?" This made no sense. "Happiness? What do you mean find happiness?"

"All it means is to find the answer that will bring you the happiness to revive you from your old self," she said. "Part of the reason that I actually can't fully revive you is because you're still filled with sorrow and anger. Even if you don't believe it, those negative emotions are eating away at you. If you can find true happiness, then you'll be reborn as a different person."

"…" I was basically being given a second chance at life. "Is that the only condition?"

"Yes," she answered. "Now, we've been here for long enough. What is your choice?"

"I'll go to the new world," I quickly answered.

"Very well then," she nodded and waved her hand.

Instantly, several orbs appeared floating in front of me. "W-What are these?"

"Each orb contains a special attribute," she said. "If you ever find yourself in a pinch, the power provided to you should be able to help you out. However, it'll only get you so far. It'll be your own efforts that will get you where you want."

"…" Looking at each of them, I couldn't really tell the difference between any of them. The only real distinguishable thing about them were their color. One was red, another blue, a white, yellow, and the last one was green. "Which one does what?"

"Even I don't know that myself," she admitted. "They were randomly selected from an infinite pool. You can get something as minor as being able to write backwards, or you could possibly get something that allows you to manipulate time."

"…" I would hope I wouldn't get something like writing backwards. People would just think I'm crazy if I did that.

I looked at the various ones. Honestly, I was gonna get something no matter what. So, I just picked the red one.

I pointed to it. "That one."

She nodded and waved her hand again. Instantly, all the other orbs disappeared and I was left staring at the red one.

"G-Gh!"

In an instant, it shot into my body and burned energy into me, making it feel as if my entire body was burning. I was even struggling to catch my breath.

"Now, good luck to you in Gamindustri," she wished. "Whatever your happiness may be, I hope you find it and live a happy life there, Zack."

Suddenly, a white light enveloped my body and I passed out.

Whatever was in store for me, I was ready to face it...

* * *

 **A/N:**

 **Well, I somehow managed to do it. The last OC story has been written and is ready to upload now! Despite getting sick and other setbacks in my life, I managed to get this done. If any of you are interested in the upload schedule, it'll be on my page.**

 **Anyways, now that all three are done, I'll be spending the rest of my time getting ready to take the ACT. After that, I'll also be taking a break for the rest of December and partially into January.  
This is simply because writing these stories have been burning me out and they have felt forced. Some of you who have read them might have even noticed this. To me though, it was sapping the joy I had for writing and I'd like to start anew next year.**

 **So, until then, thank you all for reading and I hope to see you all again!**


	2. Chapter 2

**There's a story poll on my page. It's about what I'll write after all the short OC stories have been written and uploaded. With that being said, your feedback on that would be greatly appreciated.**

* * *

 **Chapter 2**

"…!" I shot up, gasping for air. I squinted my eyes to try to shield my eyes from the extremely bright environment.

As my eyes adjusted to the light, they fully opened and allowed me to identify my surroundings. Wherever I was now, it definitely wasn't my homeworld.

For some reason, I had been lying on a bench in some building. Finally getting up, I noticed that there were a few people who shot awkward looks at me as they quickly passed by.

I was in some large building. Getting up from the bench, I made my way over to an open area. From there, it gave me an amazing view of the area around.

The best way I could describe the place would be technology and fast-paced.

People below were hurrying to their locations, moving quickly through the roads and traveling through pipes that connected the whole city.

High towers overlooked the people and many of the people seemed happy.

"…" Wherever I was, it was already better than where I had once been.

"Shoot!" That's when I remembered the condition.

Sticking my hands into my pockets, I looked for any money. However, to my disappointment, I found I had no money.

That obviously meant I had to get a job. Though, I didn't know where I could get any work around here. In fact, I didn't even know where I was particularly.

"Excuse me," I called out to the nearest person walking by. It was a woman. "C-Could you tell me where I could get some work around here?"

"Hm? Oh, sure," she brushed her long, flowing black hair away from her pale face; she pointed towards a building shaped like a church. "That's where the Guild is. You just do a few simple tasks for them and you'll get paid."

I smiled. "Thank you!"

She nodded and smiled back, staring into my eyes with her ruby red eyes. "Don't mention it."

I spun around and dashed towards the Guild. Luckily, I had memorized a bit of the layout of the city before running off.

Hurrying down the stairs and dashing out of the building, I broke into a sprint, dodging the people walking the opposite direction.

* * *

Eventually, I made it to the Guild building. As I made it, I collapsed onto the ground in front of the building to catch my breath. "Haaa... Haaa... I really don't have my old stamina, do I?"

That's when I remembered I was supposed to have some kind of power. Sitting with my legs crossed, I let my mind wander while I slowly regained my energy.

I remembered picking some power, but I didn't know what it could be, nor did I know how to actually use it.

"…" While I did want to know how to use it, my main concern was being able to get some money to be able to fulfill my needs. If I didn't, I would die again. After that, I was pretty sure I wouldn't be getting another option again.

I finally stood up, feeling as if I had recovered enough. I headed into the Guild to be greeted by the sight of multiple holographic boards displaying thousands of messages on each one. People crowded around the boards and looked through the messages or whatever they were.

"Hello," looking away, I found myself staring at some woman. "Are you here for some work?"

"U-Uh, yeah..." I quickly nodded my head. "I-I need some money."

She smiled. "Well, everyone comes here to do quests for some reason," she pointed towards a board by the wall. "Those should have a fair amount of money. Though, I think you might have to try negotiating with that person."

Looking over, I understood what she was talking about. There was some person with an oversized blue trench coat standing there, looking through each of the quests on the board.

"…" Actually, maybe it was a robe and not an oversized coat. I looked back at the woman and smiled. "Well, thank you."

The moment she turned away, I made my way over to the board. The closer I got, the clearer the person's murmurs became.

"This one would take too much walking... But this one doesn't have the payment I need..."

From the way they were speaking, it seemed like this person was a girl. Though, I wasn't sure about what she was wearing.

"Excuse me," I tapped on her shoulder.

"Hm?" Turning around, I found a pair of leaf green eyes staring back into mine and an appearance that confirmed it was a girl. "Oh, did you want to take a look, too?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I was looking for a quest to do."

She smiled. "Well, you're probably needing some money if you're looking on this board."

"…" She wasn't wrong, but—now that I had gotten a good look at her—I was wondering why she was wearing such an oversized coat. "Yeah, that's actually why I'm here."

She stepped aside. "Well, I don't mind sharing this board."

Stepping up, I tapped on one of the quest boxes. It expanded into a bigger window and showed me the details of the quest along with the reward.

From what I could tell, the people of Gamindustri didn't use dollars. Instead, they used some coin currency called Credits. Also, half of the things they were talking about, sounded like gibberish to me.

To top that off, most of the Credit quests paid in the hundreds, which I assumed were in the tens if it were going by my currency's standards.

"Hm?" Tapping randomly on one of the quest boxes, I found myself staring at one that was actually pretty good.

The quest was to basically find some cat for some lady and bring it back to the Guild once it was found. The reward was also a few hundred Credits. Whatever the reason for the cat was, it must've been pretty important to that lady.

"H-Hey!" Just as I clicked the accept button, so did the girl next to me. I looked over at her. "Why'd you just do that!? That was mine!"

"Well, clearly, I wanted to do that quest," she answered. "Plus, we can split the reward later. Not to mention, you don't really seem to know what you're doing."

I flinched as she said that. "H-How could you possibly know something like that?"

"Easy," she pointed to my face. "It's written all over your face."

"…" To be fair, I never really was the best at hiding things anyway.

"How about this?" She started. "If we do this quest together, I'll treat you to lunch, how about that?"

"…" Actually, that was kinda the reason I needed the money in the first place. I let out a sigh, offering a hand to shake. "Fine, sure."

She smiled and shook my hand. "Good. Now, let's hurry and find that cat. Do you wanna ride with me or do you have your own way of getting to the Basilicom?"

"…" And here she was, proving how dumb it really would've been to take on this quest on my own considering I didn't know where anything was.

She let out a heavy groan. "Oh boy... Well, seeing as you don't seem to know where that is either, I'll take you there with me."

I smiled. "T-Thanks..."

"Actually, I have another question..."

Here we go again... "Yeah, what is it?"

"Do you even know what nation we're in?"

 _WHY CAN'T SHE ASK SOMETHING I'D ACTUALLY KNOW!? WHY COULDN'T SHE JUST ASK FOR THE TIME OR SOMETHING I COULD ACTUALLY ANSWER!?_

Quietly, I shook my head.

"Oh boy, you really don't know anything, do you?" She just stared at me with disappointment. "We're in Planeptune."

I rolled my eyes. "Give me a break. I don't come from around here at all..."

"Clearly," she let out a chuckle. "Now, how about we hurry and do this quest?"

I nodded. "Yeah..."

And, like that, I followed the girl with terrible fashion sense out of the Guild.


	3. Chapter 3

**There's a story poll on my page. It's about what I'll write after all the short OC stories have been written and uploaded. With that being said, your feedback on that would be greatly appreciated.**

* * *

 **Chapter 3**

"By the way, there is still one thing I'd like to know..." As I rode with the girl on her motorcycle to Planeptune's Basilicom, she looked back to me. "I never got your name."

Oh yeah, we never introduced ourselves... "Oh, you're right. Sorry, I guess it must've slipped my mind."

"Well, what is your name then?" She repeated her question.

"My name's Zack," I answered. "Now, since I've told you mine, you should tell me what your name is. After all, it is common courtesy."

"My name's IF," she answered. "Y'know, like the two letters?"

"I mean, that's a pretty weird name..." I said.

"I'm not judging your name," IF snapped back. "Or is it that you want me to show how little you really know about where you are?"

I let out a groan. "Yeah, yeah. I get it."

I heard a chuckle come from her as her full attention returned to the road ahead. "Good, now let's hurry and find that cat."

"Yeah..." I nodded and also turned my attention back to the road.

But that was when something came up in my head. "Hey, IF. Can I ask you something?"

"I guess..." She muttered. "What is it?"

"What makes you happy?"

"H-Huh?" She looked back at me for a moment before realizing she was driving and turned her head back to the road. "What's with a question like that so suddenly?"

I shrugged. "Well, everyone has feelings, right? Some express it more easily than others and I'm just wondering what makes you happy."

"Well..." She seemed to ponder the question as she drove on her motorcycle. "Well, I guess being around my friends?"

"Your friends?"

IF nodded. "Mhm. Even if they can be pretty dumb sometimes, they're always there for me, and I want to always be there to return the favor..."

"I guess that makes sense..." I murmured.

"Why do you want to know?" She asked. "You have to have some specific reason for wanting to know."

I nodded. "Well, yeah... Actually, I want to find the thing out there that makes me happy. I was thinking that maybe hearing the reasons of others would be able to help me find my own reason."

"I guess that makes sense," IF said. "Well, I hope you find that answer you're looking forward."

I smiled. "Thanks."

After that, we didn't really speak for the rest of the drive and just drove along quietly.

* * *

"Here," IF nodded up ahead. "The Basilicom is up ahead. Brace yourself."

I nodded as she hit the brakes and the bike skidded to a halt.

We both hopped off and IF parked her motorcycle. "Now, apparently this cat was spotted somewhere around here. Also, we can ask the people of the Basilicom."

"Wat, what exactly is the Basilicom?" I asked. "You never really told me about it."

"The Basilicom is the building where the leader of the nation, the CPU, lives," she began. "The members of the Basilicom are usually pretty well informed too."

"Sure..." I was pretty sure that CPUs were parts in computers. But, maybe not here.

"Anyways, why don't we take a look inside the Basilicom?" IF suggested. "It doesn't hurt to look, and we might be able to get some good information out of there."

Nodding, I followed IF into the Basilicom building. Entering, I looked around to see people in white-purple robes filling out papers and helping out the people that came in.

"Excuse me," IF walked over to one of the Basilicom members. "Do you know about any cat that's maybe passed by?"

"Hm?" One of the Basilicom members came over to us. "Well, we've seen one pass by earlier this week; it was heading towards the northern part of Planeptune. Though, somebody had also been chasing it."

"That must've been the lady," IF muttered. She turned to me. "Come on, Zack. Let's go find that cat!"

"Right!" Nodding, we ran out the Basilicom and both hopped onto the motorcycle. As soon as it started up, we hurried to the north of Planeptune as fast as we could.

Actually, the Basilicom was close to the northern edge of Planeptune, so it was only about a ten-minute drive.

As we made it, we parked the motorcycle once again and hopped off. We looked around. "Do you think it's close by?" IF asked.

"Mreoow!"

Hearing a nearby cat, we turned our heads in the direction of it. "Yeah, I think it's close by."

"After it!" IF said as she sprinted on ahead.

I followed close behind her.


	4. Chapter 4

**There's a story poll on my page. It's about what I'll write after all the short OC stories have been written and uploaded. With that being said, your feedback on that would be greatly appreciated.**

* * *

 **Chapter 4**

"Look, there it is!" As we both turned an alleyway and the cries became louder, we saw a cat at a dead end.

"Mreeoowww!"

"After it!" We both sprinted towards it.

"IF, look out!"

"…!"

*Clang!*

Just before IF could grab the cat, I pulled her away, barely escaping a blade thrown right at her face.

We both turned around to face our attacker. It was somebody wearing a black outfit equipped with many weapons and such. They also wore a black hood and mask to cover up their face.

"…" However, staring into their red eyes, I felt like I had seen them before...

"No wonder something as simple as finding a cat was worth so much..." IF muttered. She reached into one of her pockets and handed me a silver dagger. "Here, you might need this."

"Thanks, I guess..." I stared at the small blade, grasping it firmly. But I came to a realization. "Wait, don't you need a weapon, too?"

Answering my question, she pulled out a pair of blades and held them at her hands like claws. "You don't have to worry about me. Besides, we'll only really need this if it comes down to it."

I nodded. "Yeah..."

IF faced the assaulter again; they stared at us with a calm, emotionless expression. "Who are you, and why do you want this cat so badly?"

"…" Instead of answering, they unsheathed a katana radiating with red lightning. "Move..."

"… Won't talk, will you?" IF sighed and raised her weapons. "Well, it looks like you'll have to use that dagger to help me beat the answer out of this person, Zack."

"S-Sure..." Here I was, going into a life-or-death battle with no fighting experience.

I let out a groan but raised my small blade at the killer. If I really had been granted some power, then I would really need it right now.

The killer just took a stance. "Die..."

"…!"

"Look out!"

*CLANG!*

Before I could even process what was going on, I found the killer standing right in front of me. Unable to think properly, I let my body react for me.

As they thrusted their blade forward, I managed to parry their blow and step back.

"Gotcha!"

*Clang!* *Boom!*

While the killer was still immobilized, IF dashed towards them from behind, thrusting both blades at their back.

However, the killer had managed to recover just in time to spin on their heel and cleanly slice off the edge of the blades. Following that, they planted their foot down and grabbed IF by her head, smashing her into the ground.

"A-Agh!"

IF's head hit the ground and she lost consciousness.

"GET AWAY FROM HER!"

"…!"

Just as they picked IF up, I sprinted in and threw a punch right at their jaw. Somehow, the punch connected and sent them stumbling back.

In that time, it allowed me to catch IF and set her gently back on the ground.

As I stood back up, I found the killer glaring intensely at me. They firmly grasped their blade. "Die!"

*Shwing!*

This time, I focused and managed to see them coming. Swinging at me, I hopped out of the way.

As they began to quickly twist their body towards me, I thrusted my blade at their side.

"…!"

*BOOM!*

However, they managed to kick the blade away and use their other foot to kick me against a wall.

"G-Gh!"

Just before I could pull myself free, the killer pinned me to the wall with their arm, slowly draining the oxygen from me.

I used as much strength as I could to free myself from their hold, however it wasn't enough.

The killer pressed their katana against my neck slowly. Immense pained burned as I found myself losing air and the killer pressed harder.

Slowly, my vision became blurry. And here I was, thinking that this life would be better. Yet, I hadn't even survived a single day.

All I could do was stare into the killer's red eyes as I was about to be killed. They said the same word again. "Die..."

I gritted my teeth and continued to struggle as my vision slowly reddened.

"…!"

Summoning the last of my strength, I kneed the killer and kicked them away. As they stumbled back, I collapsed onto the ground on my knees, struggling to catch my breath.

 _Well, I bought myself a few more minutes of life..._

Struggling back to my feet, I found the killer glaring at me again. This time, they looked as if they were going to rip me to shreds.

I took a deep breath and readied myself for the killer's next move. For some reason, something made me feel as if I had the power to take them down.

"Die!" They dashed forward once again, this time even faster.

"…!"

*Boom!*

Just as they appeared in front of me once again, I reflexively pulsed with my hand. As I did so, vines sprang from the depths of the ground and lunged towards the killer.

*Shk!* *Slash!*

Surprised by this, the killer stepped back and began rapidly cutting away the many vines.

I was also surprised, but I didn't have the time to wonder. Instead, I just raised my other hand and pulsed again.

*CRASH!*

In that instant, a blast of force blew them away and crashing into the side of the building across the street.

Before they could fully pull themselves free from the wall, I raised both hands and pulsed once again.

This time, a blast of fire shot from my hands and headed right towards the killer.

*BOOM!*

The flames made contact and blew up, creating a large wave of heat and debris.

As the smoke slowly faded away, I was shocked to see the killer still there. However, their clothes were burnt and torn at this point. This revealed to me that it was a woman with her black hair in a ponytail. Somehow, their mask remained intact.

And they still managed to hold their blade. "This isn't over!"

With those last words, she dashed away before I could give chase.

However, I had other things to worry about...

* * *

"M-Mgh..." Seemed like she was finally awake now. "H-Huh? What?"

I let out a sigh of relief and smiled at IF. "Good to see you didn't die. How are you feeling?"

"… Y-Yeah, I'm fine," it took her a moment to grasp where she was and her surroundings. "Where's the cat and the killer?"

I smiled. "Well, the killer ran off. As for the cat..." I raised the cat that I had managed to capture. "I managed to catch the thing."

IF's eyes widened. "Woah, you actually did it! What about the killer? Why'd they run off?"

"I somehow managed to get them to run," I answered.

"How though?" IF asked curiously. "There was no way you won with that tiny little blade I gave you!"

I nodded. "Yeah, you're right. In fact, I lost the dagger and almost died. But, somehow, I managed to survive..."

"How'd you do it?" IF continued asking.

"Here," I raised a finger at the wall and pulsed. Instantly, a shard of ice smashed into the wall. "Whatever happened when I was fighting her, the killer, I guess I had managed to learn how to control the elements..."

"That's incredible!" IF shouted.

"Yeah..." Obviously, I wasn't about to tell her about how I had been granted those powers. "Now, how about we head back to the Guild? I have some questions to ask that lady about this cat anyways."

IF nodded in agreement, managing to get to her feet. "Yeah, let's go."


	5. Chapter 5

**There's a story poll on my page. It's about what I'll write after all the short OC stories have been written and uploaded. With that being said, your feedback on that would be greatly appreciated.**

* * *

 **Chapter 5**

"Oh, I missed you so, so much, Mr. Puchi!" The little girl brought the cat close to her face.

"Mreowwwww!"

She rubbed her cheek again the cat's face. "I missed you too!"

"…" Well, I guess that cat had good reason to run away then. Honestly, it looked like this kid was trying to strangle this cat with affection.

In fact, I kinda felt bad for dragging the cat back to the Guild with us.

IF and I decided to turn our attention to the mother, a plump woman. She smiled at us. "Oh, thank you for making our daughter happy again!"

I smiled but decided to just cut right to the chase. "That's great and all, but how'd you come across that cat?"

"Well, we were walking home from the pet shop one day," she began. "And we found this cat hiding in some alleyway with a terrified expression. Ever since our daughter saw it, she's been in love with it and we decided to adopt it."

I looked over at IF. "Are you thinking what I am?"

IF nodded and faced the lady. "Ma'am, when we went looking for this cat, we were attacked. Do you, by chance, know why we would be attacked?"

As soon as IF said that, the woman's face paled as white as a ghost. "S-So, it was true...! I-It... I-It was true! Oh! Save me! It was true! WHAT SHALL WE DO?!"

"…" We both watched as the woman burst into tears and began screaming randomly. Needless to say, she had managed to catch the attention of the entire Guild.

Before there was even a chance she began hyperventilating, I grabbed her and held her in place. "Ma'am, please calm down. We would just like to know what this all means. Could you please calm down and tell us? We promise we'll make your panicking stop."

She took a deep breath and calmed herself as best as she could. "I-I suppose so. If you can get this to stop, I'll gladly tell and reward you both."

While her daughter continued to lovingly strangle the cat, the lady led us to a table and we all sat down.

"So, could you start from the beginning? Or at least what you remember?" IF asked.

"Yes," she nodded and took another deep breath. "See, we used to live a happy life, my daughter and I. However, ever since we found that cat, nothing but bad things have been happening to us. At first, I thought it was because my luck had finally run out, but I soon realized that couldn't have been it.

"Whenever we were near that cat, bad things would always happen. However, when we were away from the cat, everything was actually pretty okay. Even though I realized this, I didn't want to get rid of the cat because of how happy it made my daughter."

"Then why were we attacked?" I asked. "Was that just because we were around the cat or was it something else?"

"I would have liked to believe that it was because of the cat's luck, however it wasn't," she sighed. "Eventually, I had just about grown tire of the cat's misfortune. However, on that same night, I heard a voice that told me they would ruin my life if I didn't give the cat up."

"Ruin your life for a cat?" IF now wore a confused expression. "What could possibly make a cat so precious?"

"That's what I thought at first too," she agreed. "However, I obliged and made the cat leave, fearing for the safety of my daughter and I. However, she had grown too attached to that cat and was the reason why that quest had been put up."

"Then why didn't you seem so afraid when we brought the cat back?" IF questioned.

"Well, it had seemed that you had brought the cat back fine. So, I thought that maybe that voice was a bluff and it'd be fine to keep it again," she answered pitifully. "However, when I had heard of the assassin, I knew that keeping the cat would only lead to our death..."

"But what could possibly be so special about that cat?" I asked. "It looks like any dumb cat to me..."

"No, wait," IF pointed to its paw. A string was tied on tightly and there was something dangling off of it. "What is that?"

I walked up to the cat and pulled the string and object off. What I found myself staring at was some diamond-shaped crystal. It was a dark violet color and glowed white. "W-What is this?"

Shk!*

"G-Gh!" Just before I could really examine it, I was pinned to the wall with a knife right through my wrist.

Everyone in the guild instantly turned to face the attacker. It was the same woman from the alley. Except, this time she wasn't wearing a hood or a mask, allowing me to see who she really was.

It was the woman I had met at that skyscraper.

"EVERYONE! GET HER!"

As soon as someone shouted that, everyone charged towards the woman.

They swarmed her from all angles, swinging their weapons and shouting. However, she just smiled and unsheathed her katana.

They were all fools. "GET THE HELL AWAY FROM HER!"

However, I had warned them all too late.

Shk!* *Shwing!* *Slash!*

As they all swung at her, she unsheathed her katana that bathed in red lightning. In one swift motion, she chopped off the head of all the oncoming people.

Before the heads even hit the floor, her speed spiked and she sped towards the rest of the people, cutting away at them.

As soon as the heads hit the ground, the ones that remained were left staring at a bloody pile of bodies under the woman's boots.

Her attention turned to me. More specifically, the crystal I still held in my other hand.

I gritted my teeth and turned to IF. "IF, PROTECT THE KID AND MOM!"

She nodded and pulled out a new set of blades. "I'm on it!"

My gaze turned back to the woman as she slowly made her way over to me. "I'll kill you and get revenge for what you did to me..."

Quickly, I pulsed with the stabbed arm and my arm turned to steel. I pulled the blade out before the metal turned back to skin and bones.

Shk!*

"A-Agh!"

Just as I turned to face her, I found her blade stabbed through my gut. Slowly, I felt myself losing my strength. Though I was doing my best to stay conscious, I was still losing my strength quickly.

"Zack!"

"Don't worry, I'll be taking that off your hands now..." The woman smiled as she took the black crystal from my hands. "I bet none of you even know why I need this, do you? Well, this crystal contains all the fears and negativity of Gamindustri."

"So what?!" IF shouted. "What are you even going to do with that?!"

"Heh, you people really are gullible..." A smirk formed on her face. "This negative energy will be used to give me the power I need to rule Gamindustri! Nobody will be able to stand in my way! No human nor CPU!"

"W-Why though!?" I spatted out. "Why would you want to do that to the people!?"

She turned back to me. "Why? To show everyone that there really is no hope or happiness left in the world! They're all just clinging to their silly fantasies of being happy!"

"You're wrong!" I snapped back.

"Oh really?" She twisted the blade, causing me to lose my breath and the burning pain to grow. "Let me show you how wrong you really are!"

Shatter!*

As she said that, she crushed the crystal in her hand and it released a dark energy. The energy then went into the woman and her whole body became shrouded in a black energy, only leaving her face half exposed.

A black flame began to emit from her. "HAHAHAHA! THIS IS IT! THIS IS THE POWER I NEED TO PROVE YOU ALL WRONG! YOU'LL ALL DIE HERE!"

Quickly, I pulsed energy throughout my body and managed to turn to steel once again. I pulled the blade out and quickly ran to IF and the two people.

"YOU'LL DIE HERE!" She shouted as she released energy.

"Hold on!"

Right before the energy reached us, I pulsed as much energy as I could. Just as I did, everything went pitch black...


	6. Chapter 6

**There's a story poll on my page. It's about what I'll write after all the short OC stories have been written and uploaded. With that being said, your feedback on that would be greatly appreciated.**

* * *

 **Chapter 6**

"…" My eyes opened to see Planeptune in ruins and flames.

"O-Ow!" As I tried to get up, my head exploded with pain. That's when I also remembered the others.

Looking around, the Guild had been completely obliterated. However, I saw IF along with the mother and daughter still there.

"IF!" Fighting through the pounding pain, I ran over to them and knelt at IF's side; she was still unconscious. "Hey, wake up!"

"M-Mm..." Slowly, her eyes fluttered open. Once she seemed to come to her senses, she snapped awake and stood up, looking around frantically. "What's going on? Where'd that woman go?"

"I don't know; I just woke up too," I admitted. "But I think the best we can do is to go look for her. After all, who knows what she could've done by now?"

IF nodded. "Yeah..."

We both stood up and IF ran over to the mother and daughter. Somehow, the cat was still there too. She nudged at their, hopefully, unconscious bodies. "Hey, wake up!"

Luckily, they were both still alive and managed to get to their feet. When they saw the state of Planeptune, they seemed completely terrified. "H-How could this happen?"

"We're just as confused as the two of you," IF said. "But you two need to get to safety as soon as possible. Zack and I will finish this."

"Thank you, both of you," the woman smiled at us. "We won't forget this."

"Wait," before they left, I called out to them. "Can I ask you both something?"

They turned back to face me. "What is it?"

"What makes you both happy? What keeps you from losing your sanity despite all that has happened?"

The woman smiled and glanced over at her daughter. "That's easy for me to answer. As long as I have the people I care about in my life, then that's all I need to be happy."

"It's easy for me too!" The little girl squeaked. "I have my mommy and Mr. Puchi!"

"… I see, thank you..." I smiled at them both as they turned and started off again. _Maybe the answer has been right in front of me this whole time..._

"Come on, Zack," IF nudged my shoulder. "Let's go. It's time to finish this."

I nodded. "Yeah, but do you think your motorcycle is still fine?"

"Well, why don't you look over there?" IF pointed. Sure enough, lying on the rubble was IF's motorcycle, somehow still intact. "I'd say we still have a method of finding her quickly."

"Nice," I followed IF and get on the motorcycle. "But where should we start looking though?"

*BOOM!*

As if on cue, we saw an explosion to our east. IF smiled. "Well, I think we know where we should start now. Come on, let's go!"

With as much force as possible, IF started the engine and we sped towards the destination.

* * *

*BOOM!*

"ALL OF YOU WILL DIE!"

We arrived on the scene to find the woman obliterating the citizens with a single blast of energy.

"Hey! Stop that right now!"

"Hm?" She turned to me, devilish red eyes staring back at me. "Oh? You two are still alive!? Well, guess I'll just finish you both off right here and now!"

"No, just stop this!" I shouted again. "This isn't the answer to your problems!"

"Oh? Then what is the answer then?" She asked; she pointed her katana towards me. "IT'S BECAUSE OF MY FAMILY AND THE PEOPLE THAT I WAS FORCED TO BECOME LIKE THIS! YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE TO LIVE A LIFE LIKE MINE! YOU'VE NEVER BEEN ABUSED, IN PAIN, OR SUFFERED, HAVE YOU!?"

"…" That's when I realized who was standing before me. I clenched my fists. "No, you're wrong! I'm exactly like you! I just never took the wrong turns like you!"

"REALLY!? REALLY!?" SHE SHOUTED. "THEN IF YOU REALLY KNOW WHAT I'M GOING THROUGH, WHY DO YOU KEEP FIGHTING FOR THE SIDE FILLED WITH SELFISH PEOPLE!? IN THIS WORLD, IT'S KILL OR BE KILLED!"

"YOU'RE WRONG!" I boomed. As I shouted that, elements pulsed from my body and emanated from my body. "YOU CAN DECIDE YOUR OWN FATE AND CHOOSE WHAT TO DO BASED ON WHATEVER MAY HAPPEN IN YOUR LIFE! AND, BECAUSE OF THAT, I CHOOSE TO PROTECT THE ONES I LOVE! THEY'RE THE PEOPLE KEEPING ME ALIVE AND HAPPY!"

"…. Really? REALLY!?" Her burning red eyes shined brightly at me. "IF THAT'S THE CASE, LET ME SHOW YOU HOW WRONG YOU REALLY ARE!"

I sighed and looked back at IF. "IF, get away; I can handle this."

However, she wore a concerned expression. "B-But—"

"Trust me here," I smiled at her. "I'll be fine. As long as you're safe, I'll be fine..."

"… Zack..." Smiling, IF nodded. "Yeah, I'll leave it to you. But you better come back alive!"

As she hopped on her motorcycle and sped off, I turned back to face the insane woman. "I'm sorry it had to come to this, but if this is the way it has to be, then so be it..."

"YOU REALLY THINK YOU CAN TAKE ME ON ALL BY YOURSELF?!" She let out a cackle and nodded towards her left. "IF THOSE CPUS CAN'T TAKE ME DOWN, THERE'S NO WAY YOU CAN TAKE ME DOWN!"

"…!" Turning to where she had pointed to, my eyes caught sight of four woman, bounded tightly in tight black cords. They were all unconscious and heavily injured.

"YOU DON'T KNOW WHO THOSE PEOPLE ARE, DO YOU!?" She asked. "THOSE ARE THE CPUS OF GAMINDUSTRI, THE PEOPLE WHO WATCH OVER EACH NATION! AND I DEFEATED THEM ON MY OWN! WHAT MAKES YOU THINK YOU CAN DEFEAT ME!?"

I let as many of the elements emanate from me and channeled all of my strength. "BECAUSE I KNOW THE PAIN YOU'VE BEEN THROUGH! I'LL SAVE YOU FROM THE HELL I COULD HAVE BEEN PART OF!"

"YOU'RE JUST DUMB! YOU'RE A FOOL!" She cried. "I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOUR SHIT! I'LL END THIS ALL RIGHT NOW! GAMINDUSTRI WILL BE DESTROYED AFTER THIS!"

*BOOM!*

As she charged towards me at lightning fast speed, I was able to somewhat read it.

Quickly, I pulsed and a large blast of fire shot towards her.

*FSHHHH!* *CRASH!*

Before I could even register the movement, she sliced it in half and grabbed me by the neck.

Reacting in time, I turned her hand to ice and smashed my head against her's. As she stumbled back, I pulsed once again. This time, a force of wind blasted her through several buildings and created a lot of debris.

"GRAHHHHHH!"

*SMASH!*

Letting out a loud cry, she smashed out of the debris and her burning eyes glared at me. "I'LL KILL YOU! I'LL RIP YOU TO SHREDS!"

"G-Gah!"

*BOOM!* *CRASH!* *Shk!*

Before I could even do anything, she appeared in front of me once again. Kicking my gut, I was blown away and smashed deep into the ground.

"A-Ah..."

I didn't even have time to pull myself out of the ground before I found a burning blade stabbed through me.

She stared back at me, smiling widely. "YES! YES! IT'S DONE! NOW I CAN CHOP YOU TO PIECES!"

*Shk! Shk! Shk!*

"G-GAHHHHHH!"

She repeatedly stabbed the blade through my body and slowly chopped away at my body. "HOW'S IT FEEL! HAHAHAHA! THIS IS YOUR EN—!"

"…!"

"W-What!?"

Just before she could deliver her final blow, I mustered my strength and pinned her down. In that moment, I took all of my channeled energy that stored my elemental powers and let it all explode.

Slowly, I felt myself becoming hot and my vision becoming blurry. "WE'LL BOTH DIE HERE! YOU AND I, TOGETHER!"

"NO! NOOOOOO!" Despite how much she struggled to escape, she couldn't free herself from my grip. "THIS ISN'T HOW IT'S SUPPOSED TO END!"

As my vision became white and my body began burning, I smiled. Even though I hadn't even survived one day in Gamindustri, I was still happy because I had found my answer...

"NOOOOOOOOOO!"

"SAY GOODBYE!"

*BOOM!*

* * *

 **Third Person POV**

"H-Hey! Hey, wake up!"

IF knelt at his body and stared at him. "P-Please... Don't tell me...that you're..."

His body had been burnt and most of his clothes had been incinerated. At the cost of his life, he had managed to kill the woman and save Gamindsutri.

However, IF was sad. He had said that he would come back alive and well.

"Y-You idiot!" IF felt the tears coming. "Y-You made a promise!"

As she sobbed and sobbed into his chest, Zack's eyes slowly fluttered open. Coming to his senses, he saw IF crying into his burnt chest, something he didn't know how he felt about. "I-IF...?"

"Z-Zack!?" Raising her head, IF stared at Zack, shocked to see him alive and not dead. "Y-You're alive!? I thought that you... y-you know...?"

He smiled. "I told you that I would come back alive, didn't I?"

She quickly wiped away her tears and nodded. "Y-Yeah, I guess you're right..."

Despite what he was saying, he was also surprised. He was sure he had died. But that was when he realized he had been reborn because he had found his happiness.

He had indeed been given a second chance at life.

"H-Hey, how about we head and get lunch?" He asked. "You did promise that if we completed that quest together, remember?"

IF smiled. "Y-Yeah, let's go!"

* * *

 **A/N:**

 **And here's the last chapter of this story.**

 **I'm sorry that this story was so short; however, I simply ran out of time and do apologize because this story had so much more potential.**

 **But, moving on, Merry Christmas to you all! I hope you all had a good holiday and got some nice gifts! Personally, I just got some headphones and was pretty happy.**

 **Still, the reason this chapter came out a bit later than usual was that I was pretty busy today.**

 **With all that out of the way, I want to actually say something pretty important: after having time to reflect and look back at this year, I gotta say that it wasn't exactly my best year for writing. I started not enjoying the process at some point and it just became a hassle to write. Because of this, I'm going to actually be taking a break from writing until-maybe-February, around the time when I uploaded the first chapter of Colors of Darkness. Who knows? I just need time to find that spark again and find my passion for writing once again.**

 **I don't want to force myself to keep writing and not make content I enjoy. So, I'll be taking a break until then. I hope you all can understand and be patient with me. While it's been a fun year, it's also been pretty rough too.**

 **But, with all that said and out of the way, thank you all for reading REALLY short story. Again, I'm sorry I couldn't make it longer, but I had time constraints. Nevertheless, I hoped you all still enjoyed it.**

 **Also, the other two OC short stories will all be uploaded this week. Meaning, the rest of the chapters will be uploaded THIS WEEK.**

 **That's all for me this time. Thank you all so much for reading this short story and I hope to see you all again!**


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